I’m a huge fan of Brian Tracy. His advice on productivity goes deep on “What” and “How”. His writing is motivational and accessible. His messages are clear and consistent.

In fact, neither his message nor his wording have changed a great deal in the 10 years since I first read his book “Goals!”. But not much needs to. His empowering formulas for personal and professional productivity are simple, practical and effective.

That said, I’m not sure about the structure of this version of those tips. There’s a good deal of repetition. Many points seem to fit within a single theme or add detail to each other. The “21 Great Ways” ends up feeling more catchy than practical. As a result, I’ve restructured the content into a simple six-step plan below.

Nevertheless, Brian’s original does chant a powerfully motivational mantra of planning, prioritisation and action. I am indebted to him for giving me some solid advice on productivity and sales 10 years ago at a point in my life when I needed it most.

Never forget that all of this is a means an end: spending more time with the people you love.

Further Reading:

“Goals!”, Brian Tracy– A superb book that covers “Eat That Frog!” and more in twice as many pages. I can’t recommend this book enough, especially if you’re at the start of your career. Provides the kind of solid, practical advice that it’s amazing we don’t all receive as part of a basic education.

“Getting Things Done”, David Allen – A classic on efficiency and effectiveness. I’ve been using some variation of David Allen’s system for as long as I can remember. It transformed me from an energetic, chaotic mess into the kind of person people trust to never drop the ball. If you’ve ever wished you could do 4 times as much and still feel at peace when you get home, this book is for you.

“The Four Hour Work Week”, Tim Ferriss – The textbook on simplification and automation. I’ve found Brian has a tendency to add more things than he takes away. Tim’s tips on automating the unimportant, time consuming components of life will close that gap.

“Think And Grow Rich”, Napoleon Hill – A wonderful and practical dose of philosophy. The “Rich” of this book is much broader than simple financial reward. A perfect complement of “Why” and “What” to Brian’s strong hand of “What” and “How”.

“Deep Work”, Cal Newport – Perhaps one of the best tips and goals of Brian’s writing is to create long periods of uninterrupted work. Cal paints a compelling case for “Deep Work” in this excellent book. A great read for anyone lost in the shallows.

TANQ entries for “Eat That Frog!”

“No matter how many personal productivity techniques you master, there will always be more to do than you can ever accomplish in the time you have available to you, no matter how much it is.”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“I had fallen into the mental trap of assuming that people who were doing better than me were actually better than me. What I learned was that this was not necessarily true. They were just doing things differently, and what they had learned to do, within reason, I could learn as well.”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“The ability to concentrate single-mindedly on your most important task, to do it well and to finish it completely, is the key to great success, achievement, respect, status, and happiness in life.”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“The first rule of frog eating is this: If you have to eat two frogs, eat the ugliest one first. The second rule of frog eating is this: If you have to eat a live frog at all, it doesn’t pay to sit and look at it for very long.”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“Your success in life and work will be determined by the kinds of habits that you develop over time. The habit of setting priorities, overcoming procrastination, and getting on with your most important task is a mental and physical skill.”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“All improvements in your outer life begin with improvements on the inside, in your mental pictures.”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“There is one quality that one must possess to win, and that is definiteness of purpose, the knowledge of what one wants and a burning desire to achieve it.”

— Napoleon Hill, Eat That Frog!

“One of the very worst uses of time is to do something very well that need not be done at all.”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“Before you begin scrambling up the ladder of success, make sure that it is leaning against the right building.”

— Stephen Covey, Eat That Frog!

“Planning is bringing the future into the present so that you can do something about it now.”

— Alan Lakein, Eat That Frog!

“We always have time enough, if we will but use it aright.”

— Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Eat That Frog!

“Every great man has become great, every successful man has succeeded, in proportion as he has confined his powers to one particular channel.”

— Orison Sweet Marden, Eat That Frog!

“Losers try to escape from their fears and drudgery with activities that are tension relieving. Winners are motivated by their desires toward activities that are goal-achieving.”

— Denis Waitley, Eat That Frog!

“Motivation requires motive.”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“There is never enough time to do everything, but there is always enough time to do the most important thing.”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“You can use three questions on a regular basis to keep yourself focussed on completing your most important tasks on schedule.The first question is, ‘What are my highest value activities?’The second question is, ‘What can I and only I do that if done well will make a real difference?’The third question is, ‘What is the most valuable use of my time right now?'”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“Things that matter most must never be at the mercy of things that matter least.”

— Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Eat That Frog!

“Only engage, and the mind grows heated. Begin it, and the work will be completed.”

— Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Eat That Frog!

“The first law of success is concentration – to bend all the energies to one point, and to go directly to that point, looking neither to the right nor to the left.”

— William Matthews, Eat That Frog!

“Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”

— Theodore Roosevelt, Eat That Frog!

“Fully 85 percent of your happiness in life will come from happy relationships with other people, especially those closest to you, as well as the members of your family. The critical determinant of the quality of your relationships is the amount of time that you spend face-to-face with the people you love, and who love you in return.”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“It is the quality of time at work that counts and the quantity of time at home that matters.”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“Get it 80 percent right and then correct it later. Run it up the flagpole and see if anyone salutes. Don’t expect perfection the first time or even the first few times. Be prepared to fail over and over before you get it right.”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“Do the thing you fear and the death of fear is certain.”

— Ralph Waldo Emerson, Eat That Frog!

“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”

— Wayne Gretzky, Eat That Frog!

“Persons with comparatively moderate powers will accomplish much, if they apply themselves wholly and indefatigably to one thing at a time.”

— Samuel Smiles, Eat That Frog!

“A journey of a thousand leagues begins with a single step.”

— Lao-Tze, Eat That Frog!

“Any time you stop striving to get better, you’re bound to get worse.”

— Pat Riley, Eat That Frog!

“Concentrate all your thoughts on the task at hand. The sun’s rays do not burn until brought to a focus.”

— Alexander Graham Bell, Eat That Frog!

“The first requisite for success is the ability to apply your physical and mental energies to one problem incessantly without growing weary.”

— Thomas Edison, Eat That Frog!

“Feed yourself as you would feed a world-class athlete before a competition because, in many respects, that’s what you are before starting work each day.”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“It is in the compelling zest of high adventure and of victory, and of creative action that man finds his supreme joys.”

— Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Eat That Frog!

“It is not what happens to you but the way that you interpret things that are happening to you that determines how you feel.”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“It turns out that optimists have four special behaviors, all learned through practice and repetition.First, optimists look for the good in every situation.Second, optimists always seek the valuable lesson in every setback or difficulty.Third, optimists always look for the solution to every problem.Fourth, optimists think and talk continually about their goals.”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“There is more to life than just increasing its speed.”

— Mahatma Gandhi, Eat That Frog!

“I have several friends who have become best-selling authors by simply resolving to write one page or even one paragraph per day until the book was completed.”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“One of the best work habits of all if to get up early and work at home in the morning for several hours. You can get three times as much work done at home without interruptions as you ever could in a busy office where you are surrounded by people and bombarded by phone calls.”

— Brian Tracy, Eat That Frog!

“Do not wait; the time will never be ‘just right.’ Start where you stand and work with whatever tools you may have at our command, and better tools will be found as you go along.”

— Napoleon Hill, Eat That Frog!

“And herein lies the secret of true power. Learn, by constant practice, how to husband your resources, and concentrate them at any given moment, upon a given point.”

— James Allen, Eat That Frog!

Discipline is “the ability to make yourself do what you should do, when you should do it, whether you feel like it or not.”

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Arthur is a learning-freak, slow-thinker, and writer who loves helping curious, busy people digest chewy topics fast. One of his passions is language learning. Send yourself his Free Ultimate Language Learning Guide today to save you or a friend thousands of dollars and hours on your journey to fluency.